


If They Be Worthy…

by Mauisse_Flowers



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor - All Media Types
Genre: (AKA Jane Has PTSD), But They Can Be Worked On, Ian isn't Hydra, Jane Kinda Has Issues Now, Mjolnir is Sentient, Sif and Jane might be a thing, Thor is Dead, Vague descriptions of violence, family by choice, ladies kick ass
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-05 13:27:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4181556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mauisse_Flowers/pseuds/Mauisse_Flowers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy was worthy. Sif had to be worthy. Jane wasn't. But she couldn't let Hydra win. Not today. Not ever. They had killed Steve, and Ian, and Tony's dad, and countless others. She couldn't let them win. Because if they won, where was the point in trying? Thor had died protecting his friends and family, Jane would do the same. She would protect Darcy, Sif, Bucky, and anyone else that was hers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	If They Be Worthy…

**Author's Note:**

> This is a side story to Canary Bay. It _can_ be a stand alone, but I highly recommend it not be.  
>  Spoilers inside, both minor, major, and obvious from the tags.
> 
> Have fun~!

When both Ladies Darcy Lewis and Jane Foster had agreed to come with Sif, the Asgardian had been more than just pleased, she had been ecstatic. As far as she knew, Sif was the last of her kind, and knew no one on Midgard save the two women and Doctor Erik Selvig who was getting on in Midgardian years and shouldn't be made to journey so far and so long. Them agreeing to help her meant the World Tree to Sif.

So they set out, using false names and money Anthony Stark and Pepper Potts had given them. They used a simple, old truck that broke down three or four times within the first five months before Darcy finally had enough and, between the mortal Seer and astrophysicist, the entire engine and body was redone. The three women spent two weeks in a small, broken down hotel, using the old car repair shop next door to fix the truck.

In those two weeks, Darcy picked up an old Hydra trail, and she ran with it. Her eyes were bright gold for nearly a week as she followed it, staring ahead while writing directions for Jane as the astrophysicist drove. Sif, in the back, read the Midgardian fairy tales of her and her people's lives, rewriting them on an empty book on her side.

Then they found an old Hydra base, half buried in Mt. Michell in North Carolina. The three planned an attack, gathering items to make fire bombs ("Always bring Molotov cocktails to a gun fight, Sif. _Always_."), Jane creating small temporary black hole machines that would also self destruct, mapping out the base from what Darcy could See (everything), and Sif going over simple offense and defense moves with them.

Getting in was the easiest part, as was getting out. Taking out "Hydra goons" was eventful and teaching (Jane found five seconds ended up leaving a few parts behind, but eight seconds was just enough). Finding useful information had been the hard part. But, with half of the place in flames and a quarter in ruins, they had. Snatching up the files, the trio had run.

Along the way to Thor's hammer, Hydra bases went up in flames, from the Americas to Antarctica to Asia. At one point, they found a note at the front desk of the hotel from Bucky saying he'd left one up in the Himalayas for them. He also left a thick folder on what Hydra had been gathering on Thor, his friends, Asgard, and Thor's hammer before S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fall that had been kept off the servers. Darcy was livid to find some of the information was from her ex-intern Ian, who had been taken and tortured for information after she had dismissed him.

Sif may have patted the younger woman's shoulder as Jane held her, letting the Seer cry into their shoulders. In a way, Sif understood the woman's pain, Jane as well. The Hydra base had not only been in flames at the end of the next week, but completely obliterated in the shared anger of heartbroken ladies.

A year later, Thor's hammer was found, nestled into the cliff face over a small, Icelandic town. Mjolnir almost seemed to be cradled by the rocks, held to the island as a babe to its mother, loved dearly and sad to see go.

The town had been evacuated and filled with Hydra operatives, much to their dislike. The only good things from this was that bystanders would be unharmed and Mjolnir had finally been found.

"We can't just go in guns blazing this time." Jane groaned. "We're right under the volcano. If we do something wrong, it's gonna blow. We're gonna kill the town a few miles down. We'll kill the entire island."

"How are we to protect Mjolnir, then?" Sif demanded, setting down her mug of mead. It wasn't as strong as Asgardian, but the bartender certainly knew how to make a good brew. Sweet, with a hint of tart. "If these monsters have a say, they will figure a way to move it, and use it. The things I have read they have done and planned are terrible, far more twisted than the things Loki had done."

"Oh shit." Darcy winced. "So this is _really_ serious."

"Dammit, Darcy! Don't agree with Sif." Jane warned. "I hate Hydra just as much, but I'm not attacking at the cost of thousands of lives."

"Janey," Darcy glanced down at her right wrist where Hǫfuð wrapped around, looking like a Celtic sword tattoo. When she needed it, the sword would come to her hand, leaving behind a smooth wrist. "What if we can get to Mew-mew and one of us is worthy? I'm not, I've got Stinger here, but what if you or Sif are worthy? We can try it."

Sif shifted uncomfortably, dark eyes looking away. Both zeroed in on the movement, all three well versed in each other's body language by that point.

"What?" Jane asked, eyes narrowing in on the Asgardian.

"I did not tell you, for I did not think it important." Sif began after a few long moments. "But, when Thor threw Mjolnir to Midgard while locked in battle with Jörmungandr, he placed a new spell on it. A more free spell."

"And what was this spell?" Darcy questioned, not bristling like Jane was. The astrophysicist got so prickly when information was kept from her, especially when it was Sif doing the hiding.

"It was much like the AllFather's own qualifications, in all honesty." Sif sighed. "He said, "If they be worthy of the power of I, Thor, and of pure conscious and heart, may they lift Mjolnir and use it in battle until the end of days or they relinquish my power." I hadn't thought much of it as he told me to go, to get away. Not until Darcy recommended us picking it up."

"How was this not important?" Jane demanded, standing from her seat, setting down the bottle of rum she'd been ingesting. Her ability to hold her own had gotten better with how often Sif talked the two into divesting the local bars of alcohol. "It's probably one of the most important things during this whole thing, Sif. It's like– like not telling us Odin was going to have Thor marry you until I came along."

Sif made a face of pure disgust, as if the thought of being in an arranged marriage to Thor was the worst idea in the universe. Jane pointed. "See! Even you hate the idea! You get it, now?"

"I did not say I did not get it, Jane. I simply hadn't thought much of it, because the specifications were almost exactly the same to the AllFather's. Like with Hǫfuð, matters of the heart are of concern, as is a clear conscious. None of us have that, do we? We are clouded by anger at Hydra and Loki and the death of loved ones. I am surprised Darcy can still hold the sword after finding out about Mr. Ian as she had."

Darcy looked away from the two women at that, grimacing, remembering just how angry she'd been, and how she'd torn through more of the men in that base than Sif had the chance to kill through the entire half-year. The blood that had stained her gloves still flashed behind her eyelids at times, leaving her shaking and terrified.

Sif noticed Darcy's reaction and nodded, leaving the calmer brunette alone. She hadn't meant to hurt Darcy with the comment, but the fact still stood.

"We may not be pure hearted at this point, but I'm pretty sure you didn't have one to begin with." Jane bit out, turning and storming out of the bar, heading upstairs to their room.

Sif watched her go and sighed, raising her mug to Darcy with a sad smile. "Forgive me for my trespass, Darcy."

"It's all good," her bright eyes twinkled vaguely. "At least you can say sorry. It'd be harder if you didn't."

Later on, at bed time, Jane climbed into bed with Sif, wrapping her thin arms around the Asgardian, hiding her face in thick, black-brown hair. Sif was still for a moment, before she, too, laid an arm over the smaller woman's waist, kissing the top of her head where a crown should have rested. Darcy soon joined, holding Jane as a sister did, one hand holding Sif's.

It was the best sleep they'd had in months.

The morning that followed was what could be called the calm before the storm. The three dressed in their battle gear, Jane softly apologizing to Sif for her anger as they dressed, and Sif returning the favor. If Jane's forgiving hug lingered, Sif didn't say anything, and Darcy certainly didn't notice.

Then they were leaving the hotel.

"So, we take out the assholes without BHBs and Molotovs. Just our brute strength." Darcy repeated as she laced up her boot as the door of their truck. She stood up, looking to Jane. "I can do that. But can you?"

"Yes." Jane assured, a grim set to her mouth. "I've been practicing too."

"Good." Sif climbed into the back of the muddy piece of shit. She tossed a pair of cattle prods to the mousey woman. Jane strapped them to her sides. A set of small knives followed, slipped up her sleeves. "Take these. And whatever you do, _don't_ let them see the knives. They're a last resort. And if you use them, aim for the neck or the eye."

"I know, Sif." Jane didn't grit her teeth, but the worry in Sif's eyes did rub her wrong. "I'm not a baby."

"To me, you both are." The Asgardian sat down in the truck bed. "Prove me wrong, Jane."

Jane did, cutting down men left and right, underestimated by the Hydra agents from her lack of Black Hole Bombs. She broke ranks and ran when her first cattle prod was ripped from her hands, jumping on a goon's back to flip _him_ and snap his neck as Sif had done a thousand times.

"I will not die today." She growled as one got her arm, twisting it behind her back. She used the momentum to spin, grab him, flip, and slam the other prod deep into his neck. He was twitching even after his heart had stopped.

"Jane!" Sif yelled, blocking with her own sword. "Mjolnir!"

Jane spun, looking up at the suddenly short distance between her and Thor's hammer. _No_ , Jane thought. _It was Thor's hammer, now it belongs to no one. It belongs to whoever's worthy._

Darcy was worthy. Sif had to be worthy. Jane wasn't. But she couldn't let Hydra win. Not today. Not ever. They had killed Steve, and Ian, and Tony's dad, and countless others. She couldn't let them win. Because if they won, where was the point in trying? Thor had died protecting his friends and family, Jane would do the same. She would protect Darcy, Sif, Bucky, and anyone else that was hers.

Jane didn't even know she'd made the short climb until she was reaching, hand slipping through the leather strap, fingers clasping the handle. A jolt of _something_ coursed through Jane's body, lighting every nerve ending on fire. It was like being struck by lightning. Maybe she had been, if the gathered storm clouds above were anything to go off of.

A small startled yelp touched the crackling air.

Jane was on her back, staring up at the sky. Her body felt different, stronger, better. And her clothes were different. More melded to her, snug in a way she never knew possible. Her blink was slow.

When she sat up, everyone had gone still. The whole area seemed to wait in anticipation. Jane saw Darcy had been disarmed, about to be shot.

 _No_.

Jane lifted her hand, twisted her wrist as she looked at Mjolnir in her grasp, then threw him at the asshole who was trying to kill her sister. He crashed to the ground, Mjolnir coming back to her, and chaos broke out.

A voice whispered in her ear to turn, and she did, swinging the hammer up, reaching out to grab the enemy and throw him up. The strength coursing through her was an adrenaline rush of power, focused on stopping those attacking her friends. She focused it on the man as he came down, kicking him across the battlefield.

"Jane, duck!" Darcy called, and Jane obliged. A knife went flying overhead. A choking sound, the rush of air from dead lungs, and a body fell. Jane didn't even look as she strode out into the center of the battle, spinning the hammer to get a better grip, strap tightening until it dug in.

"Jump on the count of three." She ordered, raising Mjolnir high. "One, two," he came down, strike reverberating through the ground as Jane screamed, "three!"

Sif and Darcy jumped, pushing with all their strength. Rocks crumbled, the ground buckled, but the volcano did not stumble in its stagnant life. Hydra men buckled left and right, falling into creators, crushed by rocks. And Jane crouched in the middle, hair bright as gold and wild as a lioness.

A calm filled the area, Jane rising slowly to her feet. She bushed back her hair that had snapped from its bun when the hammer had chosen her, lightning striking her to make the claim final. Her eyes, brown bright with electricity, surveyed the chaos. The village homes had been ruined, collapsed beyond repair, much to Jane's dismay. She could feel the hammer's own despair, it's sentience a welcome shock to her system.

Jane walked forward, planning to set Mjolnir down, but the hammer's strap tightened further, a ringing sound filling her ears. Even without words, she could feel his– the hammer refused to be an it with its new nest in the corner of her mind– anger at her ability to let go, to leave him after so long alone. She shivered, looking at the item that, on one side, could build a world and, on the opposite, destroy the universe. Her nod was tiny, voice nonexistent, just a twitch of the lips as she said, "Okay."

Sif and Darcy appeared at her side, a touch of disbelief, happiness, and shock in their body language and eyes. Darcy's arms went around Jane's neck, screaming in delight as she jumped up and down. Mjolnir purred in Jane's ear, reflecting Jane's own happiness. Sif simply eased into a relaxed stance, smiling in a tired, what-a-long-hike way. Her hand patted Jane's shoulder, slow, a hand touching a feral cat that seemed friendly.

"I thought it– he wouldn't lift." Jane admitted quietly, looking at Mjolnir after Darcy had pulled back. Sif watched quietly as Darcy asked, "He?"

"Mjolnir's sentient. And he doesn't speak, per se, I can feel it, though. He's there, talking, telling me things. He's happy that I'm happy."

"Why did you think you wouldn't lift Mjolnir?" Darcy asked after, accepting Jane's words.

"I'm angry, I think. Or something is wrong, at least." Jane shifted uncomfortably. "All I want to do is hurt all those Hydra people. They've done so many things wrong, hurt so many people. I get angry thinking about them. I didn't feel that way until we found that first base. Afterwards, I just… I want to fight them, no one else. Just them. And I wanted to protect what was left of Thor." She lifted Mjolnir so there was no doubt what she had meant. "So when I reached for Mjolnir, I expected him to not budge."

"What were you feeling when you touched Mjolnir?" Sif asked when a silence began to grow, a tumor of discomfort among them.

"I…" confusion cross her face. "I was mad they'd killed so many, hurt so many. I didn't want them to win, because then why had we come all this way for Thor's hammer? But I also wanted to protect you, and Darcy, and everyone else. You're _mine_ ," she almost growled the word, this feral possessiveness she didn't know was there coming to life, " and I don't want you hurt. If you got hurt, I failed. I failed you, and Thor, and myself."

Sif nodded, turned, and headed for the car. "Let's go eat. You must be hungry."

Jane was confused by her friend's easy dismissal of what she'd said, but Mjolnir only seemed pleased. Darcy shrugged, hurrying after, climbing into the driver's seat in their truck. Jane followed, settled into the passenger seat. When Mjolnir slipped from her fingers, resting in her lap, her clothes returned to normal, hair smoothing into sleek sorrel brown, eyes becoming sparks of hidden power. Darcy looked over her best friend and pseudo sister in interest, then started the truck.

They ate a lot, Jane suddenly famished, packing away calories she wasn't aware she could eat. Sif kept the food coming, watching in interest. Darcy was pleased to find Jane couldn't get drunk, even when she woke up with a killer hangover in the morning.

Sif sat on the edge of her bed that night after Darcy had passed out and Jane had gone to bed, playing with the handle of her dagger, murmuring, "'If she be worthy…'"

**Author's Note:**

> Um, this started in Sif's POV (I wanted that so bad) and then suddenly Jane boot kicked Sif out the way and took over.
> 
> I actually went to Mt. Michell the Friday before this was even started. I've got to say, from all of them trees and all the people going in day in and day out, you wouldn't know it's a secret Hydra base until the thing is in flames. Oh, and it's pretty as hell up there. Also covered in weevils (I hate those damn things, ugh).


End file.
